


water lilies

by itisjosh



Series: sparks [hybrid smp] [2]
Category: Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Adopted Sibling Relationship, Enderman Hybrid Ranboo (Video Blogging RPF), Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Gen, Light Angst, Niki | Nihachu and Ranboo are Siblings, Niki | Nihachu-centric, Older Sibling Niki | Nihachu, Ranboo-centric (Video Blogging RPF), Siblings, and you are literally hyperallergic to water, imagine having a mermaid as your older sister, mermaid niki, they try their best to make it work LMAO
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-13
Updated: 2021-02-13
Packaged: 2021-03-18 20:01:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,400
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29374254
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/itisjosh/pseuds/itisjosh
Summary: Ranboo doesn't really know how he managed to get himself a sister who he can never really be around that much, but he's managed. Niki isn't able to leave her pool of water, or water in general, really, and Ranboo can't touch water.Somehow, they make it work.
Relationships: Niki | Nihachu & Ranboo
Series: sparks [hybrid smp] [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2157417
Comments: 15
Kudos: 399





	water lilies

Ranboo doesn't really know how he managed to get himself a sister who he can never really be around that much, but he's managed. He sits on the beach, cross-legged and careful to not even go close to the pool of water in front of him. It's nice here, he's covered by the shade of multiple trees that tower over him. Flowers surround the area around him, ranging from every single colour in the entire spectrum. Ranboo wonders if he should give Niki some, just as a way to say hello. Niki isn't able to leave her pool of water, or water in general, really, and Ranboo can't touch water. 

Somehow, they make it work. 

It's difficult as hell, he thinks, but it's worth it. Ranboo watches as a myriad of coloured scales shine in the light, catching the sun. He smiles, leaning back against the tree as Niki pokes her head out of the water, a small smile on her face as he looks at him. Ranboo looks away for a second, breaking the line of sight. Eye contact is still difficult for him, especially since he's been trying to get more in tune with the Enderman side of him. "Hey, Niki," Ranboo beams back at his sister, offering her a gloved hand. It's not the same as a hug, but it's the best that they can do. "How's it been?" He asks, watching the water ripple. It's sort of cerulean, and Ranboo wonders if that's it's natural colour, or if it has anything to do with the mermaid that inhabits it. 

"It's been okay," Niki tells him, placing her hand in his own for a few seconds before she pulls away. "What about you?" She asks, resting her head on her hand, elbow buried in the sand. "Have you been exploring anymore like you said you were going to?" Ranboo nods, tapping his hands against the ground, paranoia eating away at his head. He slips off the gloves, setting them away from him so they'll dry off. He knows that they're water-proof, water won't hurt him so long as he wears those gloves, but _still_. It's scary. Ranboo remembers the last time he got burnt by water, and he hated it. It was the most painful experience in his entire life, and he never wants a repeat of that. Ever. "Ranboo? You okay?" 

"I'm alright," Ranboo confirms with a smile, tilting his head back a bit. The sun luckily doesn't shine through the leaves, which he's thankful for. He doesn't mind the sun, but it's a lot easier for him to control his powers at night. Most things are a lot easier for him at night. "I've been trying to, uh, trying to get control of my powers more. You know," he pauses, tapping his fingers against the ground. "Teleporting, and all that. It's been sort of hard, but I've been- uh, I've been doing good!" Ranboo tells her, unable to push down the pride in his chest at the way that Niki beams at him. She's always been so supportive, and Ranboo doesn't think he could have ever asked for a better sister. 

"That's good!" Niki claps her hands together, though she's careful to keep a fair distance away from him, Ranboo can tell. "I'm proud of you, Ranboo! It was only a couple of months ago that you were still accidentally teleporting. You're doing really good!" Niki beams, tilting her head to the side ever so slightly. "Have you found anyone else around here? I've heard about two people, but I've never seen either one of them. One of them is apparently some sort of bird, I think?" She frowns, clicking her tongue a few times. "Maybe you should try and see if they could help you. The other one could be an Enderman hybrid like you."

Ranboo nods, though he isn't really sure if he'll actually consider it or not. He knows that Niki means well, but being around other people, especially those who are like him, just puts him through _way_ too much stress. He feels like he has to constantly do good, that he can't mess up, or else everyone will judge him. And while he _knows_ that that's not necessarily true, it just feels like that. And then he gets stressed about it, and he starts to panic, and he just internalizes everything and it's just not good at all. "Maybe," he smiles, pushing down the paranoia he feels. He doesn't need to think about that, not right now. "How's your house been coming along, Niki?" Ranboo asks, glancing at the pool of water in front of him. He can sort of see stone peeking out of the water, but he figures that her actual home is under the water. Obviously. 

"It's doing good!" Niki smiles, ducking her head under the water for a second. Ranboo can see her gills flare out for a couple of moments before she moves back up, looking a little less strained. "Sorry," she ducks her head, rubbing the back of her neck. "I didn't mean to go and do that when we were talking. I could have waited." Niki laughs, and Ranboo can't help but smile. 

"Niki, you don't need to apologise to me for _breathing_ ," he raises an eyebrow at her. "I think I'd be significantly more concerned if you _didn't_ breathe while talking to me. I'm glad that your house has been coming along good," Ranboo taps his fingers against the ground, wishing that they didn't have to stay so far away from each other. It doesn't help that Ranboo has to build up his courage and confidence to come out and visit Niki. He's just..scared. He's scared of the water, he's scared that he might fall in or that it might suddenly form a giant tsunami and pull him in. It's difficult. "Do you think we could, like, put a glass bowl on your head and fill it with water?" 

Niki laughs, her eyes crinkling at the sides. "Ranboo, as much as I would love to get out of this lake, I don't think putting a fish bowl on my head is the best way to go about doing that."

"Hey," Ranboo beams, "I never said anything about it being a fish bowl. That was all on you, Niki. I only said a glass bowl, you twisted my words. Can't blame me for that one," Niki rolls her eyes at him, and it's fond and endearing and it makes him smile a little too much. Ranboo feels a little happier than he has in weeks. It's been really lonely being out on his own, and he hates it. He wishes that he wasn't as scared of the water, he really wishes that he could stay by Niki's pond without his heart threatening to fail. "Maybe there's like, an enchantment that could get you out of here?" Ranboo raises an eyebrow. "Like, water breathing, but, you know. On land." Niki laughs, swimming backwards. 

"I don't think you need to worry about me getting up on land, Ranboo. It's okay," Niki assures him. "Do you think that you'd like to go and try to find that house I mentioned?" She asks, tilting her head to the side. Ranboo looks away, shifting uncomfortably. He knows that Niki just wants what's best for him, that's all she's ever really wanted. He _knows_ that he should listen to her and look for that house, but he's _scared_. Ranboo is scared of a lot of things, and even if Niki is probably right about the house being safe or whatever, he's still scared. He doesn't know why, but being afraid just seems to be ingrained into his nature, and it's one of his least favourite parts about himself. "Ranboo." 

"What?" Ranboo snaps his head up, blinking a few times. He hadn't even realised he had zoned out. "Yeah, Niki?" He pauses, glancing away from her gaze. "I'm..kind of scared to go looking for the house. You know?" Ranboo offers, turning back to look at his sister with a sheepish smile. "I'm really nervous. What if I accidentally hurt them, or they hurt me? Or if they find out that you're here? You can't escape anyone if they try to hurt you, Niki. I don't want to get you hurt." 

Niki reaches out, placing her hand on the ground, palm up. Ranboo slips on his gloves nearly immediately, squeezing Niki's hand as soon as they're on. He breathes out, closing his eyes and screwing up his face. "You know that I'll be fine," Niki murmurs. "You know that I'll always be okay. You know that, Ranboo. Okay?" Ranboo breathes out again, the words grounding him. He squeezes Niki's hand again as a way to remind himself that he's still here, that she's still there. They're both okay.

"Okay," Ranboo confirms. "Okay. I'm good now. Thank you, Niki," Niki beams at him, resting her head on her other hand. "I think that I'm gonna do okay," Ranboo murmurs. "I've been getting a lot better at teleporting, and I'm not as scared around water. I'm not sure how long that's gonna last, though. All it'll take is one wrong move, and I.." Niki squeezes his hand way too hard, and Ranboo winces. "Ow, Niki. Ow."

"Don't think about things like that," she narrows her eyes at him. "Seriously, Ranboo. You'll only stress yourself out. Now," Niki smiles, her face softening. "Have you seen anything interesting?" She asks. "Anything really cool on your adventures?" 

Ranboo smiles, giving her a half-shrug. "Just a couple of forests and flowers. I found a new kind of hybrid, but they didn't see me. I think they were probably like a, uh, a Phantom? I think that I'd really like to meet more hybrids, actually. I think it would be pretty cool to find people like me, you know? Like us. I don't know if there are any other mermaids out there, but there has to be, right? There's no way that it's just you. And there's gotta be some more Endermen hybrids out there, like me. I don't really want to talk to them or anything, but knowing that they exist and that you're not alone, that's..kind of nice, you know? It's just.." Ranboo sighs, pulling his hand back, scooching back so he's sat against the tree. "I love you, Niki, I do! You're my sister, you- you're probably my best friend, it's just..sometimes I want to meet other people. But I also _don't_ want to meet other people."

Niki nods along with his words, looking understanding as she normally does. "I understand that," Niki murmurs. "It can be really hard to put yourself out there. Especially if you don't even know where to begin," Niki looks up at him, and Ranboo nods in agreement. "Ranboo, you're never going to get over your fears unless you do them. I'm not saying to dive in water or do something that would obviously _hurt_ you. But talking to other people," Niki smiles, "that's not going to hurt you. It can make you really scared and nervous, but it isn't going to kill you, I promise. And if you want, Ranboo, you can bring them here, to the lake. I'll be here, I'm not going to go anywhere. That way, you know, you would have support." Ranboo glances up at the leaves, smiling a bit. Niki is far too kind to him. 

"Thank you, Niki. You, uh, you know..I've been thinking a lot about where I came from. What you told me, too," Ranboo looks away. "About the thing I was holding in my arms before I accidentally dropped it. I don't remember a lot of that, but I think that it might be important. I'd like to..maybe I should look for that thing. Do you know what it looked like?" He asks. "If I had it on me, it had to be important, right? And I couldn't even control my powers back there, and if I was risking my life for something or someone other than myself, then, you know.." 

"Well," Niki sighs, glancing to the side. "I don't know a lot, I'm sorry. All I really know is that you nearly fell into my pond and that you had a purple box in your arms. You teleported away, and when you managed to come back, the box was gone. You collapsed about then, and I came out of my lake to make sure that you were okay. I didn't really know you were even a hybrid at first," Niki admits. "But that's all I know about the box, I'm sorry, Ranboo. I wish that I knew more, but I don't." 

Ranboo nods, picking at the blades of grass by his side. "That's okay. Thank you, Niki. You know," he smiles, ducking his head. "I think that this would be the time I'd normally leave. But, um, I think I might stay for a bit longer. Maybe, uh, another few hours?" Ranboo offers. "You don't have to keep talking to me, though!" He holds up his hands. "It's okay if you want to like, you know, swim around and stuff! I don't mind! I just.." he sighs, biting down on his tongue. "I like it here, and you're..right. I don't like saying it, because I really hate it when you're right most of the time, but I need to..get used to my fears. Stuff like that," Ranboo mumbles. "Plus, I like spending time with you. Um, pretend like I didn't say that. I'm supposed to hate my annoying, overbearing older sister, right?" 

Niki laughs, her eyes shining. "Okay, Ranboo. You can stay as long as you want, you know that. Maybe later you can show me off your powers. How's that sound?" Ranboo beams, nodding along with the words. 

"Yeah, that sounds great," he grins. "Thank you, Niki. You know. For everything." 

"Of course, Ranboo. You're my little brother," she smiles up at him, ducking under the water. "Have fun!" Ranboo watches as she swims deeper, picking up coloured pieces of glass and rocks, setting them aside to make room for something. He never thought that he would want to stay anywhere near water, but right now, he doesn't even feel _scared_. 

They really do somehow manage to make it work. 


End file.
